Daijiworld Media Network - Sakleshpur (DV/SP)

Sakleshpur, Feb 19: The Sakleshpur civil JMFC court on Thursday February 19 ordered status quo on Yettinahole project, after eight persons filed a public interest litigation (PIL) against the project, which the locals allege, has been taken up clandestinely without taking into confidence villagers as required.

The PIL was filed by Chandrashekar, Gopal, Manjunath, H N Devaraj, Sunil Kiran Pinto, Subhash, Arun and Moganna Gowda in the Sakleshpur court on February 2. Under the umbrella of Malnad Janapara Horata Samiti led by advocate, Kiran Kumar, this PIL had been filed.

State chief secretary, Hassan district deputy commissioner, Megha Infrastructure Company, and Karnataka Neeravari Nigama managing director are the respondents in the case.

Though the locals had protested against the project, the work was started on Yettinahole project, and near Maranahalli, the work began in a private property without the consent of the land owner. It is said that when the owner questioned this, water resources minister, M B Patil, said that notification to the land owner was not required for drinking water projects. It is said that the said Nigama had entered into agreement with certain land owners for constructing mini dams relating to drinking water project.

Also, in Yettinahole, trees were allegedly chopped without the permission of the forest department. The concerned had not obtained no objection letter from the forest department. The forest officials visited the spot on February 17 and registered a case and seized a JCB involved with the tree felling work.

Kiran Kumar alleged that while executing the project, the concerned had ignored rules and regulations in force relating to land acquisition. He pointed out that the law requires that the land owners are informed in advance about the intent to acquire their lands, and a notification needs to be published in newspapers. He noted that 70 percent of people affected by the project have to give their consent for acquisition of their lands for the project. He said that the PIL was filed as the departments failed to conform to the above conditions, and the project was taken up without conducting social and environmental impact studies as mandated by law.